Trying to predict what players will be chosen by specific teams is nearly impossible before the All Star games, Combine and Pro Days, but below is the first mock draft of the new year. As always I try to match hat I am hearing about team's desires with what I believe are the best players available, so take a look and send me your thoughts.

1. Kansas City Chiefs: Manti Te’o, MLB, Notre Dame, Senior: No quarterback warrants being the first overall pick and after Jovan Belcher’s suicide the Chiefs have a strong need for another impact linebacker and Te’o can be that player.

2. Jacksonville Jaguars: Bjoern Werner, DE, Florida State, Junior: While many may expect the Jaguars to reach for a quarterback to replace Blaine Gabbert, we believe that Tim Tebow will be that player. So the new general manager can focus on improving the Jaguars pass rush, which has struggled with consistency in recent seasons.

3. Oakland Raiders: Luke Joeckel, OT, Texas A&M, Junior: With many needs the Raiders make the decision to draft Joeckel who is viewed as potentially one of the safer choices in the Draft. Joeckel could either upgrade the Raiders at left tackle and push Veldheer to the right side or could take over at right tackle while Veldheer stays on the left; either way the Raiders offensive line improves greatly.

4. Philadelphia Eagles: Jake Matthews, OT, Texas A&M, Junior: Without Jason Peters playing left tackle in 2012 the Eagles’ offensive line struggled all season. So drafting Matthews gives them insurance in case Peters struggles to return from injury and could be a big upgrade at right tackle if Peters is healthy and back at left tackle for the 2013 season.

5. Detroit Lions: Kenny Vaccaro, SAF, Texas, Senior: Louis Delmas is starting to get the “injury prone” label and the Lions do not have a top level safety to play next to him. While some may view Vaccaro as a reach, we believe he would be an immediate starter for the Lions and would upgrade their pass defense.

6. Cleveland Browns: Chance Warmack, OG, Alabama, Senior: The Browns have a ton of young offensive talent at the skill positions, but for them to blossom their offensive line needs to improve. Warmack would upgrade their interior offensive line play and improve their rushing attack immediately.

7. Arizona Cardinals: Mike Glennon, QB, N.C. State, Senior: Whomever the new head coach in Arizona ends up being, he likely will not want to count on Kolb, Skelton or Lindley for the future . So they draft the strong armed Glennon who reminds us a tremendous amount of Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan.

8. Buffalo Bills: Taylor Lewan, OT, Michigan, Junior: With OG Andy Levitre an unrestricted free agent and no established right tackle on the roster; the Bills grab Lewan who could start at right tackle from day one.

9. New York Jets: Jarvis Jones, OLB, Georgia, Junior: While the Jets are likely to draft a quarterback to challenge Sanchez, they do not want to reach for one here. So they jump at the chance to add the explosive Jones who should upgrade their outside pass rush immediately.

10. Tennessee Titans: Dee Milliner, CB, Alabama, Junior: The Titans have a number of holes, but the chance to add a strong and physical cornerback with pro bowl potential makes too much sense for them to pass up.

11. San Diego Chargers: Eric Fisher, OT, Central Michigan, Senior: A better prospect coming out of school than Joe Staley, Fisher could take over at left tackle and help keep Philip Rivers upright for the rest of his career.

12. Miami Dolphins: Keenan Allen, WR, California, Junior: Quarterback Ryan Tannehill showed flashes that he can be the long term answer for the Dolphins, but he needs weapons. Allen is a big play receiver who can “take the top off the defense” to open everything up for their offense.

13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Oday Aboushi, OT, Virginia, Senior: The Buccaneers right side of their offensive line struggled with consistency in 2012, which leads to their choice of Aboushi who is strong, physical and consistent. He should challenge to start at either right tackle or right guard as a rookie.

14. Carolina Panthers: Star Lotulelei, DT, Utah, Senior: Carolina has two quality defensive ends in Charles Johnson and Greg Hardy, but its interior defensive line continued to struggle in 2012. Lotulelei would be an impact player in the middle of its defensive line from day one, which would upgrade the Panthers’ defense.

15. New Orleans Saints: Sheldon Richardson, DT, Missouri, Junior: Sedric Ellis is an unrestricted free agent and the Saints need to upgrade their defense. Richardson would give them an explosive, penetrating defensive tackle that would regularly make impact plays behind the LOS.

16. St. Louis Rams: Jonathan Cooper, OG, North Carolina, Senior: Quarterback Sam Bradford was constantly under pressure in 2012 and Cooper is an athletic and powerful lineman with the talent to start at guard or center for the Rams.

17. Pittsburgh Steelers: Dion Jordan, OLB, Oregon, Senior: James Harrison was not the impact pass rusher in 2012 that he was earlier in his career and Lamarr Woodley struggled with injuries throughout 2012, so they add Jordan. Jordan could backup both in 2013 while adding explosiveness and speed to the Steelers pass rush.

18. Dallas Cowboys: Johnathan Hankins, DT, Ohio State, Junior: Neither Jason Hatcher or Marcus Spears has become an elite defensive lineman and Hankins would add size and strength to the defensive end position in the Cowboys 34 scheme.

19. New York Giants: Ezekial Ansah, DE, BYU, Senior: Osi Umenyiora ‘s contract is up so he will likely not be back and Justin Tuck has recorded two straight up and down seasons. Ansah is raw, but similar to Jason Pierre Paul in terms of athleticism, competitiveness and potential.

20. Chicago Bears: Lane Johnson, OT, Oklahoma, Senior: To say the Bears offensive line has been a major weakness in recent seasons would be an under-statement. Johnson has only played offensive tackle for two seasons and with his height, long arms and athleticism his upside is outstanding.

21 P. Cincinnati Bengals: Cordarrelle Patterson, WR, Tennessee, Junior: The Bengals hit big time on their selection of AJ Green and like the potential of Marvin jones, but the chance to grab Patterson, who reminds us a lot of Falcons’ receiver Roddy White, makes too much sense as he would be a great weapon opposite Green.

22 P. St. Louis Rams (From Washington): Tavon Austin, WR, West Virginia, Senior: After upgrading their offensive line with their first first round pick, the Rams get the most explosive offensive weapon in the Draft for Bradford to throw to.

23 P. Baltimore Ravens: Alex Ogletree, LB, Georgia, Junior: With Ray Lewis coming off a major injury and entering his 18th season in 2013, the Ravens jump at chance to grab Ogletree who is the most explosive inside linebacker in the Draft.

24 P. Minnesota Vikings: Jesse Williams, DT, Alabama, Senior: Longtime stud defensive tackle Kevin Williams is 32, so the Vikings grab Williams who can be their third defensive tackle in 2013 and take over as starter when Williams is done.

25 P. Indianapolis Colts: Johnthan Banks, CB, Mississippi State, Senior: Ryan Grigson pulled off a great trade getting cornerback Vontae Davis and now he drafts Banks to shore up the other cornerback position.

26 P. Seattle Seahawks: Barrett Jones, C / OG, Alabama, Senior: Jones is not a top athlete, but he is a smart, aggressive and versatile lineman who could start at center, guard or even tackle for Seahawks in the future.

27 P. Green Bay Packers: Tyler Eifert, TE, Notre Dame, Senior: Current tight end Jermichael Finley is not expected to return to team in 2013, so the Packers upgrade the position by drafting Eifert whose combination of size, athleticism and hands are tough to find.

28 P. San Francisco 49ers: Margus Hunt, DE, SMU, Senior: Since defensive end Justin Smith was injured, the 49ers defense has struggled greatly, so they need to find a young defensive lineman to groom as his replacement. Hunt is an incredible athlete with great length, explosiveness and strength who could turn into a star in a season or two.

29 P. Houston Texans: Eric Reid, SAF, LSU, Junior: The Texans have been expected to draft a receiver in the first round to play opposite Andre Johnson every year and never have, so I believe they will continue that trend and focus on a different position. Reid is an active safety with the toughness to be a force against the run and the range and coverage skills to help the Texans deep coverage.

30 P. New England Patriots: Damontre Moore, DE, Texas A&M, Junior: The Patriots pass rush still struggles to get consistent pressure, so they take a gamble on Moore who has the talent to become a dominating outside linebacker in their system and bring positional versatility to their defense, which Belichick gives enormous weight to.

31 P. Atlanta Falcons: Sam Montgomery, DE, LSU, Junior: John Abraham is not getting any younger, so the Falcons draft Montgomery to backup Abraham and Biermann in 2013 and take over for Abraham when he retires.

32 P. Denver Broncos: David Amerson, CB, N.C. State, Junior: Champ Bailey is nearing the end of a Hall of Fame Career, so Coach Fox adds Amerson who has the combination of size, strength, willingness to play physical and coverage skills to be a solid all-around cornerback.

No Geno in the first round. Not very realistic AT ALL, but....if you could get Geno in the second round--and it was guarenteed--who would you pick #1?

Since everyone is all over my nuts about Te'o, I pose a question to you all.

Who is the clear cut, #1 ranked ILB in this draft as reported by draft analysts so far?

Now who is the clear cut #1 Ranked QB?

What in the world does that have to do with anything?!!!! Who is the clear cut best Punter? Just because somebody is the best at their position doesn't mean they should go before another person when there MIGHT be a debate on who is the best. This isn't about getting the best player in the draft. It's about getting the player that helps the Chiefs win a SB. You don''t turn your team around or win a SB because of your LB's. You CAN NOT win without a QB. Take a chance at the best one, simple as that. If you don't have a legit QB, you aren't a real team in the NFL.

If Te'o ends up throwing a score of 8 on the board, I want nothing to do with him.

I'm not sure how much you actually know about the game of football, but you need intelligent players at the MLB/ILB and Safety positions. So if Geno Smith goes out there and has a bad combine, throws up a below average Wonderlic, and Te'o tears it up and posts a 25+ Wonderlic, I'm not going to be surprised at all if we draft him. Nor would I oppose it.

DJ has won 2 or 3 games for us if I'm not mistaken, but that is actually beside the point here. It certainly is a QB driven league, but the QB is not the only man on the field. You don't win games if you give up 30-40 a game, so the argument of "QB's win games, X position doesn't" is moot. Do you think the Vikings go to the playoffs without AP? No. Do the Texans make the playoffs without Arian Foster? Not a ****ing chance in the world. Do the ravens go to the playoffs without Rice? Not going to happen. Does Seattle go to the playoffs without Lynch? Yeah ****ing right, and Russel wouldn't look nearly as good without him.

In all honesty, there are VERY FEW QB's in this league you can make that argument for them winning games. Brady, Mannings, Rodgers, Ryan(despite the lack of playoff wins) sure, and most of them are in the playoffs. But half of them also have a solid ground game too.

It isn't always about the QBs on the teams, but it is about the WHOLE team functioning as one unit. Having a solid running game and solid defense, will win you more games than not, and help pave the way to a playoff run. After all, I don't give a **** if we make the playoffs to get blown out by the Colts, I want to win a playoff game for a change, and that is going to require us to have a solid defense and a good QB. Of which we have neither right now.

We have the second best running back in the nfl, and with a better CB and safety prolly a pretty good defense if the offense gets rolling. A big reason this defense sucked is because the offense has so many 3 and outs.

I know it's hard, but try to listen...he's a goddamn 34 Mike backer. The position itself isn't worth the pick. The position itself isn't worth any pick in the first round.

No, but you seem to be in terms of your argument. And Johnson plays a different position. If you've already got an All-Pro level guy at the WILL, pissing away a first rounder, let alone the overall #1 pick, is ignorant at best.

You are so locked on at getting a QB in this draft, it is ridiculous. You probably don't even know or care who else is in this draft outside of this position, ****, if Pioli was a QB you'd probably be all for drafting him just because we need a QB right? You don't care if he fits this offense, or the offense of our next HC/OC pairing. You don't care if he fits the play makers already in this offense, you just want to draft to spend our #1 pick on a QB so we finally do it right? I'm sure they could polish a ****ing turd and you'd still draft it. Point here is that I don't want to waste a #1 pick because we are thirsty. I want to invest that #1 pick on someone that will better this team and get us going forward as an improvement. If that is Geno, so be it. I'm all for it. If that is Te'O, great, all for it. If it happens to be a ****ing Center out of Southwest Missouri Eastern Middle State Tech, I don't care. I'm all for it. Just as long as we aren't making DESPERATE SELECTIONS

No, I made the point. If there isn't a certified, guaranteed lock for QB in this draft, we shouldn't be opposed as a whole, to taking someone else. If there happens to be a CB that climbs the draft, I wouldn't be opposed to that either, and that, in the current state of things, is an even bigger reach for us.

Point is, if Te'o ends up being the absolutely best football player in this draft, posts an amazing, unbelievable combine and pro day, and the QB class blows ass in the same events, I'm not going to ignorantly sit on the "Draft a QB first" bandwagon. There are going to be guys in the second round that can start for us, and I'll guarantee that right now.

Quote:

Originally Posted by threebag02

To be fair I think our linebackers have won more games than out quarterbacks.

Man your memory of what QB's were "locks" going into past drafts is pretty poor. Stop being so ****ing afraid of drafting a QB. You need to take a chance. You can't win without a QB. Go ahead and try to improve the team and ignore the QB position and enjoy not winning a SB. Do you watch the NFL?

I would imagine someone has a best punter and kicker too, should we draft them #1?

QB is the most important position on the field on either side of the ball, that is undeniable. You're trying really hard to put words in my mouth that won't fit there.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Saccopoo

Kevin Minter or Alec Ogletree.

Geno Smith.

Uhhhh, Not sure who you read, but Te'o is the undisputed #1 ILB, and QB is Smith/Barkley, some other random guy who just jumped up the list as those two fell.

That's a hard sell there buddy, and you're trying hard to "prove" a point that isn't there.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NJChiefsFan

What in the world does that have to do with anything?!!!! Who is the clear cut best Punter? Just because somebody is the best at their position doesn't mean they should go before another person when there MIGHT be a debate on who is the best. This isn't about getting the best player in the draft. It's about getting the player that helps the Chiefs win a SB. You don''t turn your team around or win a SB because of your LB's. You CAN NOT win without a QB. Take a chance at the best one, simple as that. If you don't have a legit QB, you aren't a real team in the NFL.

You don't win a super bowl with a QB alone, that argument is so flawed and stupid. Yes, a solid QB is going to win you games, but without talent around him, and without a defense at least keeping the other team from scoring as much as you do, you aren't going to get anywhere.

If QB is the only position that matters, and no other positions matter, why the **** do CB's get paid so much? Why do WR's and RB's get paid so much?

Because we are forced to spend money with the new CBA? Because under your mindset, that is the only plausible reason.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChiefRocka

Matt Cassel is smart. Your post, not so much...

That was stupid.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Molitoth

We have the second best running back in the nfl, and with a better CB and safety prolly a pretty good defense if the offense gets rolling. A big reason this defense sucked is because the offense has so many 3 and outs.

A big reason this defense sucked, is because our secondary got torched, we were alright against the run this year, but our pass defense was pretty bad. I mean Travis Daniels and Jalil Brown? Really? We weren't even getting beat by the opposing team's QB's, if we played Croyle each week, he'd probably have had 9-10 wins without blinking.

Letting Carr go for Routt, then cutting Routt and having no legitimate depth behind them was DUMB, but that is another argument for another thread.

You don't win a SB without a QB plan an simple. You obviously need other players but you don't ****ing start with them. Every team that has fails. You keep talking about things that are flawed, the entire argument that a player that is clear cut best at his position should be taken over another where its debatable is a complete joke.